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What Path Are You On?

Nobody experiences or sees the world exactly the way that you do. Because every moment of life is new and ever-changing, all of the individual perspectives in the world are constantly changing and being shaped. The person you are in this moment will be slightly different in the next as you take in these words and the environment around you.

Not only are you influenced by outside experiences, but in this moment you can also consciously choose your perspective, thought, and reaction.

The uniqueness of each individual and their journey is one of my favorite things to ponder. But what does it really mean for our day-to-day lives?

One of the things it can do is help you recognize and accept your innate value. You have value because your experiences and how you see the world are slightly different from anyone else on the planet. You add to the greater whole.

But that’s still pretty esoteric. What does it really mean?

It means that you matter. It means that the greatest gift you can give the world is to be the absolute best possible version of you.

So often, people get caught up in their lives and doing and caring for others that they forget Who they are. They don’t take time to think about what makes them tick? What are their values? What do they enjoy? What’s important to them? How do they want to spend their time? Who do they want to spend time with?

Instead of consciously choosing your path, you may be buffeted along in the hubbub of day-to-day life until you wake up one day and realize you don’t like where you are and that you no longer know the answers to those questions. It’s typically not a pleasant day.

You can also lose sight of Who you are by constantly comparing yourself to other people. If gazing over at someone else’s experience is inspiring, that’s great! Keep doing it. But more often than not, people use the life of another to judge or criticize themselves, their contributions and progress, and their value. You are never going to be able to authentically live another’s life, and trying to do so never feels good.

Other than being somewhat unpleasant, neither of these paths is “bad” or “wrong.” They will still help you create the irreplaceable you, and ultimately taking the scenic route can be very fulfilling.

It’s just that focusing on being the best possible version of you throughout your journey can be a lot more fun and robust. It like catching a wave and riding it into shore versus paddling the whole way.

What does being the best possible version of you mean? Who is that person? What small step can you take today towards being that person?

11 thoughts on “What Path Are You On?”

I like this post and it is so true that sometimes we compare ourselves to how others are living because we think that their lives are so much better.
Thank you for sharing this, it made me snap back knowing that it’s okay to be myself.

Hanna, I really liked the start where you have so beautifully brought out the aspect of Diversity each one of us brings to the world. But frankly the latter part is fuzzy to me. What are you really driving at? While you are saying, we need to put our best foot forward to add value in the world (agreed!), you have not clarified the path to be taken to achieve this. Or am I not getting something that you have said?

Only you can define Who you are and what the best possible version of you looks like. I tried to explain why each person has value. I listed questions–What makes them tick? What are their values? What do they enjoy? What’s important to them? How do they want to spend their time? Who do they want to spend time with?–to help the reader more clearly define their Who and pointed out two major pitfalls to losing sight of your Who. No blog is ever going to be able to give you more than a nudge in the direction that feels best to you for determining and maintaining your Who as that is a large endeavor and depends entirely on the individual. Hopefully you found some value in what I presented. As always, I appreciate your comments!

Reading your blog in the morning before I start work is such a wonderful way to start my day. Rather than struggling to get the right mindset at 10am after feeling stressed at work, I start the day in the frame of mind that keeps my anabolic energy high. Thanks Hanna!